RighteousnessSample

The Evidence of Righteousness

There’s a constant awareness of falling short between excellence and mediocrity. And when it comes to God, that excellence is seen as righteousness. It has very little to do with getting things done and achieving worldly success and everything to do with practicing personal humility and pursuing spiritual obedience. God is merciful and does not expect perfection, but He wants you to be your best because doing your best brings Him glory. It does not glorify God when we just go through the motions and settle for less. It does not glorify him when we ignore his commands and settle for mediocrity. When we settle for mediocre living, we limit God’s bigness. Our boldness to pursue excellence says we believe God possesses all capability, even in our desire to be righteous.

When I feel I should do the right thing, and I do it because the right thing is what would meet God’s standard, that’s called righteousness. When I make a point of living my life to a fair, honest, and pure standard because it will glorify God, that’s called righteousness. When I change my negative attitude or approach towards something or someone because I desire a clean heart, that’s called righteousness. When I submit and suspend my own selfish desires while I could have held onto being arrogant and stubborn, that’s called righteousness. When I practice living a life that day in and out that God would be pleased with, that’s called righteousness.

Excellence should appear in every facet of life. Excellence is the evidence of righteousness. Righteousness produces excellence. This truth should encourage you to level up and focus on pursuing excellence because how you do anything is how you do everything. John 1:1-3 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” This means that every standard of excellence comes from him. He is the only one who can set the standard; not even you can do that for your own life.

The more we commit our ways to God and trust in Him, the more growth He’ll give us in righteousness, which leads to more trust in God. In the book of Exodus, Lot was a righteous man instructed to leave the sinful land of Sodom and Gomorrah and not to look back. The angels rescued Lot and his family. As they fled, the angels warned them not to look back at the city. It was not appropriate for them to stare at the sin and the suffering of others. As he escaped with his family, Lot’s wife turned to look back and instantly became a pillar of salt. God actually turned her body into a pile of salt. He won’t do that to you in today’s time, but he will convict you. See, Lot’s wife was stuck in the place of her disobedience. She did not trust the new standard God had called her and her family to. She wasn’t wholeheartedly convinced that obeying God was right, so she held on to her past instead.

When you focus on the past, your heart becomes stunted at the place of your offense. This makes righteous living hard to achieve because you can’t quite commit to God's plan. Ask God to reveal what is already yours and His set standard. You don’t have to look back. When you ignore righteousness, your destiny becomes stuck at the point of your disobedience. I don’t want what God has for me to be held up and delayed, or sadly never reached, because of my inability to let go and pursue righteousness.

If righteousness means I obey God, let go of a false standard, relinquish my past, admit when I’m wrong, and in exchange, I get to walk forward in freedom, deliverance, and prosperity, then righteousness must be what is best for me.

Spend time meditating on these scriptures:

John 1:1-3

Romans 3:23-24

1 John 1:9

Answer these questions and reflect on your answers:

1. How do you know when you have fallen short? How can you sense when you are settling for mediocrity?
2. How comfortable are you with taking a thoughtful, revealing look at God’s standard for your life?
3. Think about the moments you’ve lived righteously. What evidence of excellence can you recall?

Affirm and declare these statements:

I am awake to righteousness and believe it will lead me to a life of excellence.

I will not think of myself as anything less or more than what God thinks of me.

I have the power to pursue a righteous life.

Pray in petition to God to pursue His will and way.